Traditional media.

Traditional folk media (such as folk theater, dance and textile arts) offer health program managers a potentially powerful method of reaching rural villagers. While modern mass media (such as radio, television, printed matter) may extend messages to larger audiences at lower cost per person reached, their dependence on centralized, urban facilities and staff and their need for uniform, fixed messages often make them less responsive to local situations and specific audience needs. Traditional media use local language and symbols in a format which is familiar, credible and accessible to rural villagers. To be truly appropriate, traditional media (like other technologies) must be adapted to the overall approach, message, and intended audience with which they are used. Integration with modern media may be successful but must be approached cautiously. Evaluation is critical both for adjusting the specific project and for better assessment of the net effectiveness of folk media communication strategies. With appropriate matching of a strategy's central components and thorough consideration of implemenatation and management issues (integration, training, evaluation, funding), traditional fold media can become an extremely effective means of communicating health information. This issue outlines the guidelines for use of traditional media in health communication activities, with special emphasis on live drama puppetry, song and dance, storytelling and proverbs, and pictures,